Last Call: behd the terrifyg untold story of New York's gay bar killer | Books | The Guardian

gay killers

Gary Ray Bowl, a serial killer who murred six olr gay men an eight-month spree, was executed Florida on Thursday.

Contents:

LAST CALL: BEHD THE TERRIFYG UNTOLD STORY OF NEW YORK'S GAY BAR KILLER

In a new book, journalist Elon Green explor the unr-reported stori of gay men btally murred by a killer who evad jtice for a * gay killers *

In fact, the people who were most at risk – this se, gay men who met for hook-ups at New York Cy bars that served the muny – were given no staed or amplified warngs by eher the thori or the media, creatg a safe space for the murrer to ntue to wreak havoc. In fact, the se got so ltle attentn relative to s horror that today few remember , even wh the gay, three s after the murrs, journalist Elon Green has wrten a book tled Last Call: A Te Story of Love, Lt, and Murr Queer New York that go beyond the facts of the story to reveal the larger issu that surround them.

SERIAL KILLER WHO PREYED ON GAY MEN, WAS DUBBED 'I-95 KILLER' IS EXECUTED FLORIDA

* gay killers *

Worse, that perd reprented the height of ignorance and fear about Aids, as well as the peak ath toll the gay muny the wt, greatly impactg how the muny was viewed. Between 1987 and 1994 the cy saw a greater number of killgs than any other stretch more than half a that benighted era, gay bars were often ‘the one refuge om the perils of everyday life’, says Green. In that same time ame, a close iend was gay-bashed to unnscns by a gang of young men, g a days-long stay the hospal, and I was punched so hard the stomach outsi a gay dance club I thought the guy mt have ed a hammer.

Several years later, on a sunny day on Christopher Street (then the center of New York’s gay life), a man g an anti-gay ephet smashed my bt iend the head wh a rock. As to why he elud jtice the s, Green said, “most likely the jury believed that this was a gay man attackg another gay man and they didn’t re about the circumstanc. Given a chance to acqu, they took ” the same time, Green said that he “ultimately realized that the killer (who was himself gay) was laborg unr the same societal nstrats his victims were.

LAST CALL IS ABOUT A MURRER—AND, MORE IMPORTANTLY, HIS GAY VICTIMS“IT WAS IMPORTANT TO LET QUEER PEOPLE TELL THIS STORY,” SAYS THE DIRECTOR OF HBO’S LAST CALL: WHEN A SERIAL KILLER STALKED QUEER NEW YORK.BY EVE BATEYJULY 6, 2023COURTY OF HBO.SAVE THIS STORYSAVESAVE THIS STORYSAVE“I WASN'T TERTED DOG TE CRIME,” SAYS ANTHONY CARONNA, DIRECTOR OF THE HBO DOCERI LAST CALL: WHEN A SERIAL KILLER STALKED QUEER NEW YORK. “I WAS VERY, VERY AAID OF REVICTIMIZG THE MUNY. SO I PASSED ON .”ABOUT A YEAR LATER, CARONNA WARMED UP TO THE IA OF ADAPTG ELON GREEN’S 2021 BOOK—THE SIARLY TLED LAST CALL: A TE STORY OF LOVE, LT, AND MURR QUEER NEW YORK. HE CREDS EXECUTIVE PRODUCER HOWARD GERTLER FOR CHANGG HIS MD.“HOWARD SAID THAT WHEN HE READ , HE FELT LIKE THERE WAS A REAL OPPORTUNY TO TELL A SOCIAL JTICE STORY AND E TE CRIME AS THIS TROJAN HORSE TO BRG PEOPLE —PEOPLE LOVE TE CRIME—AND THEN TELL A MUCH BIGGER STORY ABOUT THE ANTI-QUEER VLENCE MOVEMENT.”ACRDG TO GREEN, WHO IS ALSO AN EXECUTIVE PRODUCER ON THE SHOW, THE RULT IS A FOUR-PART SERI (THE FIRST EPISO AIRS AND STREAMS ON SUNDAY, JULY 9) THAT BUILDS SIGNIFINTLY ON HIS BOOK ABOUT THE CRIM OF RICHARD ROGERS, WHO WAS NVICTED 2005 OF KILLG AND DISMEMBERG TWO MEN BETWEEN 1992 AND 1993, AND SPECTED OF KILLG AT LEAST FIVE OTHERS. GREEN SAYS THAT THE SHOW TOOK WHAT WAS SENTIALLY A HISTORY OF NEW YORK’S GAY SCENE THE EARLY 1990S AND MA RELEVANT TO TODAY. “IT'S NOT JT A VIEW OF THE PAST,” GREEN SAYS, “BUT 'S ALSO SO OF THE MOMENT.”IT’S ALSO THE STORY OF A SE THAT, OTHER THAN A NEWSPAPER ARTICLE HERE OR THERE, WAS LARGELY IGNORED UNTIL GREEN WROTE HIS BOOK. “IT'S THE KD OF THG WHERE IF YOU SQUT, YOU N SEE EXACTLY WHY THIS DIDN'T GENERATE ANY PRS,” GREEN SAYS, CG THE AIDS EPIMIC AND NEW YORK’S HIGH CRIME RATE AT THE TIME. “AND OF URSE, DIDN'T HELP [THAT] THE VICTIMS WERE PRUMED TO BE GAY. IF YOU WERE GOG TO HAVE YOUR MURR WRTEN ABOUT THOSE YEARS, YOU HAD TO BE STRAIGHT AND WHE, AND YOU'D HAVE TO BE KILLED CENTRAL PARK.”COURTY OF HBO.ANOTHER THG THAT SETS LAST CALL APART IS WHO SPEAKS MOST LOUDLY ACROSS THE SERI. TE CRIME MEDIA OFTEN CENTERS ON THE VOICE OF THE KILLER—PARTICULARLY WHEN THAT KILLER’S TARGETS ARE MEMBERS OF A STIGMATIZED OR MARGALIZED MUNY. THIS MAK SENSE AS A PRACTIL MATTER; THE VICTIMS, AFTER ALL, N’T SPEAK FOR THEMSELV. BUT ’S ALSO WHY THE TE CRIME GENRE HAS A REPUTATN FOR BEG EXPLOATIVE, OR GLORIFYG SOCIETY’S WORST ACTORS.IN LAST CALL, THOUGH, THE MAJORY OF OUR TIME IS SPENT WH THE IENDS AND FAY OF THE SLA, AS WELL AS MEMBERS OF THE CY’S GAY MUNY THE EARLY 1990S, WHEN THE AIDS CRISIS FLAMED HOMOPHOBIC FEARS AND LAW ENFORCEMENT WAS NFOUND BY—OR OPENLY HOSTILE TO—LGBTQ+ PEOPLE.MOST POPULARVANY FAIR’S “IT’S RAG TEENS” COVER AT 20: WHERE ARE THEY NOW?BY SAVANNAH WALSHRED, WHE & ROYAL BLUE MAY BE “THE MOST EXPENSIVE B OF FAN FICTN EVER”BY SAVANNAH WALSHTHE CAST OF OPPENHEIMER AND THE REAL PEOPLE THEY PLAYBY HILLARY BIS“OFTENTIM, TE CRIME, WE LET THE POLICE AND THE PERPETRATORS N THE SHOW,” CARONNA SAYS. “IT WAS IMPORTANT TO HOWARD AND ME TO LET QUEER PEOPLE TELL THIS STORY,” PECIALLY SCE SYSTEMIC HOMOPHOBIA AND THE ANTIPATHY BETWEEN THE LGBTQ+ MUNY AND THE POLICE APPARENTLY HELPED ROGERS M HIS CRIM WHOUT FEAR OF NSEQUENCE.THAT SAID, POLICE OFFICERS AND SE VTIGATORS ALSO APPEAR PROMENTLY LAST CALL, THOUGH THE SERI PULLS FEW PUNCH WHEN TO PICTG WHAT GERTLER LITELY REFERS TO AS “AWARENS GAPS THE CULTURAL PETENCY OF LAW ENFORCEMENT.”ONE SUCH MOMENT LATER THE SERI, WHEN AN VTIGATG OFFICER VERBALLY STUMBL AND FALLS SILENT WHEN SCRIBG WHAT A LLECTN OF GOLN GIRLS VIO TAP MIGHT SAY ABOUT S OWNER. “I FEEL LIKE EVERY TIME WE SAT DOWN WH AN VTIGATOR, I DIDN'T HAVE THE TENT TO MAKE THEM LOOK BAD, OR HAVE A GOTCHA MOMENT,” CARONNA SAYS. “BUT I AM LOOKG TO JT UNRSTAND, EVEN JT FOR MYSELF, WHERE THE CULTURAL BLD SPOTS LIE THIS VTIGATN.”FROM SLAVEN VLASIC/GETTY IMAG FOR HBO.USG A VAST AMOUNT OF ARCHIVAL FOOTAGE—CLUDG 1950S-ERA STRANGER-DANGER FILMS OM LOL POLICE PARTMENTS, 1990S TALK SHOW TERVIEWS WH ANTI-GAY FIGUR, AND POLIL SPEECH OM THE TIM—LAST CALL ILLTRAT HOW HOMOPHOBIA WASN’T ONLY RPONSIBLE FOR THE VTIGATN’S FAILGS. ACRDG TO CARONNA, ROGERS HIMSELF WAS MOTIVATED BY ANTI-GAY SENTIMENTS, EVEN THOUGH 'S WILY BELIEVED THAT ROGERS WAS GAY.“THERE'S NO QUTN THAT THIS WAS THAT THIS IS ABSOLUTELY ANTI-GAY VLENCE,” CARONNA SAYS. “RICHARD GREW UP HEARG ALL OF THOSE THGS THAT THE GAY BASHER EPISO ONE HEARD, THAT ANA BRYANT HEARD, THAT WE'VE ALL HEARD GROWG UP AMERI.”IT’S A TRICKY THG, 2023, TO TELL A STORY ABOUT A REPORTEDLY GAY SERIAL KILLER WHOUT ADVERTENTLY VALIDATG THE CREASGLY HOMOPHOBIC FAR RIGHT. THAT CHALLENGE ISN’T LOST ON CARONNA, WHO SAYS THE PORTN OF THE SERI THAT DISCS ROGERS’S SEXUAL ORIENTATN “WENT THROUGH PROBABLY MORE ERATNS AND ANY OTHER SECTN THE SHOW,” AS THEY KNEW HOW MIGHT BE RECEIVED BY THOSE LOOKG FOR EVEN MORE REASONS TO MARGALIZE THE LGBTQ+ MUNY. “I KNEW THIS WAS A VERY DIFFICULT STORY TO TELL, WHICH IS WHY I WAS AAID TO TELL THE FIRST PLACE,” HE SAYS.THOSE FEARS WENT AWAY, CARONNA SAYS, AS HE STARTED REARCHG THE SE, AND VISUALIZG HOW A SERI MIGHT LOOK. “YEAH, IS MSY. BUT STILL, I THK 'S WAY MORE IMPORTANT TO TELL THIS STORY THAN TO BE AAID THAT WE'RE GONNA FFLE SOME FEATHERS.”MORE GREAT STORI FROM VANY FAIR“IT’S RAG TEENS” AT 20: WHERE ARE THEY NOW?THE BT TV SHOWS OF 2023, SO FARSEX TOYS, FANCIAL CRIM, AND THE ORIG OF BARBIETHAT SOUND YOU HEAR IS DONALD TMP SCREAMG, CRYG, AND THROWG UP A MAR-A-LAGO BATHROOMIVANKA TMP IS NOT LETTG HER DAD’S MOUNTG LEGAL WO RU HER SUMMERINSI THE ACTORS STRIKE PRS APOLYPSE: “THE CELEBRY FACTORY HAS SHUT DOWN”IS ALL THIS AMATR THERAPY-SPEAK JT MAKG US LONELIER?FROM THE ARCHIVE: TOO HEPBURN FOR HOLLYWOOD (2006)EVE BATEY

In 2022, the fatal dggg and robbg of Jul Ramirez and John Umberger outsi New York gay bars put the cy's LGBTQ muny on edge. * gay killers *

— Gary Ray Bowl, a serial killer who preyed on olr gay men durg an eight-month spree that left six ad, was executed by lethal jectn Thursday at Florida State sentence was rried out at 10:58 p. But ’s also why the te crime genre has a reputatn for beg exploative, or glorifyg society’s worst Last Call, though, the majory of our time is spent wh the iends and fay of the sla, as well as members of the cy’s gay muny the early 1990s, when the AIDS crisis flamed homophobic fears and law enforcement was nfound by—or openly hostile to—LGBTQ+ people.

“It was important to Howard and me to let queer people tell this story, ” pecially sce systemic homophobia and the antipathy between the LGBTQ+ muny and the police apparently helped Rogers m his crim whout fear of said, police officers and se vtigators also appear promently Last Call, though the seri pulls few punch when to pictg what Gertler litely refers to as “awarens gaps the cultural petency of law enforcement.

”From Slaven Vlasic/Getty Imag for a vast amount of archival footage—cludg 1950s-era stranger-danger films om lol police partments, 1990s talk show terviews wh anti-gay figur, and polil speech om the tim—Last Call illtrat how homophobia wasn’t only rponsible for the vtigatn’s failgs. Directed by Anthony Caronna and executive produced by Howard Gertler om Elon Green’s 2021 nonfictn book, “Last Call” pulls back the curta on the killg spree of Richard Rogers, a male nurse who, as far back as the 1980s and until 2001 when he was eventually ught by thori, targeted gay men New York and New Jersey. Beneath the grislier aspects tailed the seri — Rogers’ mod operandi volved dismemberment and strewg body parts around the Tri-State Area — is also an evotive snapshot of gay New York the early 1990s.

KGOV'S LIST OF GAY MASS MURRERS

The HBO doceri Last Call digs to the hunt for a serial killer who targeted gay men New York the early '90s—and why the victims were almost lost to history. * gay killers *

In the harrowg send episo of “Last Call, ” which is primarily foced on Marrero and the fallout wh the unrground gay muny of his murr, one of Rogers’ alleged attempted victims speaks anonymoly about his bsh wh someone whose MO sounds closely like the killer’s. The NYPD’s often futile pursu of him across the years turns the seri to a documentary thriller s fal stag — futile also bee of the police’s own seemgly homophobic refal to take the murrs more serly.

In a timely harkeng to recent ntroversi surroundg The New York Tim’ verage of trans people, “Last Call” touch on the bias at the Tim and other New York media outlets that emed Rogers (before his inty was known) as the “gay-slay” killer obvly bee had a tchy, if--bleeds--leads rhyme to . Although the proportn of serial killers who are known to have had homosexual experience is high (over 43%), the total number of serial killers is too small to make statistilly relevant statements about whether homosexuals are over- or unr-reprented among serial killers.

) were homosexuals, but they beme wily known due to the nature of their crim or the inti of their victims, not bee they any way reprent serial killers generally. Given that ls than 2% of adults are homosexuals (pl 1 to 2% who are bisexual), there would not need to be very many homosexuals among the total number of serial killers for them to be over-reprented. But wh such small overall numbers, and wh no universally agreed upon fn of a homosexual, would be impossible to terme the relative equency of homosexuals among serial killers.

‘I GOT AN UMBRELLA AND AMBN’: INDICTMENT REVEALS ALLEGED CONSPIRACY BEHD GAY BAR DEATHS

This month, we’re takg a look at some of the most famo gay serial killers—and how their victims were treated, by the police, the media, and the public. Due to eply graed bias, ignored and mishandled evince, and assumptns about the victims, some of the s took s to solve while victim unts ntued to grow. Here are four gay serial killers that evad tectn part bee of homophobia. * gay killers *

Their actual inty would then be argued about by var blogists, gay wrers, and others, who would classify their stat as a variant of homosexualy, a distct classifitn, or reprsed homosexuals. But more importantly, none of the serial killers listed here reprent typil homosexuals, who, like the general populatn, are almost never volved vlent crime. Legally, all or nearly all of the homosexual serial killers on this list would be nsired sexual viants bee of the extreme and vlent nature of their acts — not simply bee of their homosexual orientatn.

Although homosexual murrers of sgle victims are too numero to list here, a number of particularly famo on clu: Nathan Leopold and Richard Loeb (the wealthy and amilly bright gay Chigo uple who murred a boy 1924 jt for fun; their story beme one of the natn’s most famo murr s, and was the basis for many movi, cludg Hchck’s film “Rope”); Arm Meiw (the sexually viant German nnibal known as “Der Metzgermeister” – The Master Butcher, who met a victim over the Inter who he ate and killed); John E. Du Pont (the gay member of the wealthy du Pont fa who shot Olympic wrtler David Schultz to ath); Gary Hirte (Wpa, WI high school senr who admted to killg 37-year-old substute teacher Glenn Kopske); Karla Homolka (Canadian lbian who murred her own sister). Other notable gay vlent crimals clu Kenh Parnell (paid $500 to “purchase” a young black boy named Steven Stayner, who he then raped and kidnapped); John Wojtowicz (whose bank robbery spired the movie Dog Day Afternoon).

QUEER CRIME: HOW HOMOPHOBIA HELPED 4 GAY SERIAL KILLERS CONTUE TO KILL

In the doceri Last Call, the story of a killer stalkg the cy’s gay bars be an dictment of a system that let him get away wh * gay killers *

* The List of Homosexual Mass Murrers: First published a ago, and then updated and broadst aga 2019, this topic is self-censored by the media and wtern universi. Sadly, a far longer list, of more than 34, 400 terrorist killgs sce 9/11 mted by adherents to the relign of peace the name of Allah, is available over at and a shockg number of the high-profile crim that helped to tear Ameri apart were mted by potheads as documented at But here we prent KGOV's list of homosexual mass murrers.

Gay Jefey Dahmer: raped, murred, and ate 17 young men and Adam Lanza: murred 28 cludg 20 Sandy Hook Elementary School Luis Garavo: rapist, torturer, and murrer of more than 147 of Columbia's young Omar Mateen: murred 49 Orlando wh terrible llateral John Wayne Gacy: Chigo, killed 33 boys and buried them his hoe and yard.

He was charged wh six aths but is believed to have murred 60 Charl Manson: a prostute's illegimate son, spent most of his early life stutns for offenc cludg theft, pimpg, multiple homosexual offens while rcerated, and homosexual rape.

‘RIGHTEO ANGER WAS A PART OF ’: THE SHOCKG STORY OF NEW YORK’S GAY BAR KILLER

HBO doceri 'Last Call: When a Serial Killer Stalked Queer New York' follows a strg of murrs targetg gay men the 1990s. * gay killers *

Serial Killers, who molted and murred 27 young men and boys Nathaniel Bar-Jonah: homosexual nnibal Bar-Jonah sexually molted boys Massachetts and Montana and butchered at least one, a ten year old Great Falls named Zachary Corll, Henley & Brooks: Dean Arnold Corll's sex rg wh Elmer Wayne Henley and David Owen Brooks murred and tortured 29 men and boys Juan Corona: murred 25 migrant workers and even molted their Richard Speck: murred 8 nursg stunts, bragged about on viotape showg him havg sex wh an mate and braggg about the many mat he had sodomized. Acrdg to transvte Ottis Toole, they were homosexual partners, as reported by Amerin Jtice, "Myth of a Serial killer: The Henry Lee Lus Story", episo Ottis Toole: a transvte acrdg to Amerin Jtice (episo 150) and he was a partner of Henry Lee Lus, and bragged about murrs terviews. " Of urse, homosexual men reproduce by moltg Stephen Port killed at least four young men rapg them as they were dyg and sexually asslted at least seven other Jürgen Bartsch: this German homosexual murred four boys between ag 8 and 13 and tried to kill Gary Ray Bowl: preyed on olr men and murred six, homosexuals like himself, and was executed Florida Robert Berlla: kidnapped, raped, tortured, and murred at least six men Kansas Cy, Randy Kraft: raped, tortured, mutilated and murred at least 16 young men, mostly Dennis Nilsen: Sttish serial killer and necrophiliac who murred at least 12 young men London, Stephen Port: Grdr homosexual app serial killer dgged and murred four young men Ronald Domique: raped and murred at least 23 men, many of whom he found Louisiana's "gay" Larry Eyler: murred 22 young men and boys cludg a 15-year-old whom he then Arthur Bishop: this child molter and nsumer of child pornography (the distributn of which the ACLU has supported) murred five young Daniel Conahan: this serial killer was nvicted of one and lked to more than a dozen murrs of homosexual Herb Bmeister: murred at least 20 men wh 11 of their rps found buried on his Indiana Joseph Dunn: nvicted of murrg five, nfsed to two others and to rapg many young Vghn Greenwood: this homosexual serial killer, known as the Skid Row Slasher, murred 11 William MacDonald: As Atralia's first serial killer and yet only one of the lns of homosexual Stockholm Syndrome sufferers who were kidnapped and raped to the liftyle, MacDonald murred five Michael Lupo: the sadistic Italian homosexual murred four men London and mutilated their David Villarreal: btally murred five men Texas om ag 18 to Carl Panzram: serial rapist executed at Leavenworth nfsed to sodomizg and murrg many boys and Aileen Wuornos: the prostute who murred seven Black Doodler: murred five and possibly 11 more, homosexuals he picked up San Francis John Joubert: former Boy Sut lear said he enjoyed the "power and domatn" of killg.

That rearch-driven book provis extensive, refully documented evince om many primary sourc and mastream sendary historil sourc that many of those nng Nazi Germany, cludg Hler, were homosexuals.

BROTHER OF GAY ANGELENO WHO FELL OM SYDNEY CLIFF 1988 SAYS KILLER SERV NO LENIENCY

San Francis police have doubled the reward for rmatn leadg to the arrt of a spected serial killer known as “The Doodler” who targeted members of the cy’s gay muny the 1970s – cludg a possible sixth victim publicly intified Thursday. * gay killers *

Instead, even though the German Natnal Socialists tried to take Christ out of Christmas, unbelievers who reject the Darwist and homosexual fluence on the NAZIs stead sist that they were Christians. * Homosexual Serial Killers: In Ameri, the FBI f a mass murrer as someone who kills four or more people and a serial killer as someone who kills three or more.

VICTIMS CONONT COLORADO SPRGS GAY NIGHTCLUB KILLER, CALLG SHOOTER A MONSTER AND A COWARD

- Gay Aaron McKney was beg pimped alongsi Matthew Shephard, wh whom he ocsnally had unnatural physil relatns, before he and Rsell Henrson murred Shepherd over dgs, a crime that was not the homophobic attack that McKney played as and was then recklsly promoted worldwi by the media. - The Doodler: Five San Francis homosexuals were murred and others asslted 1974 by a man known as "The Doodler" who will, wh high likelihood, turn out to be himself a homosexual.

Neher fornitors, nor idolaters, nor adulterers, nor homosexuals, nor sodom, nor thiev, nor veto [ltg for what you mt not have], nor dnkards, nor revilers, nor extortners...

THE GAY MEN FREQUENTED MANHATTAN PIANO BARS. SO DID THEIR KILLER.

" As naturally as uld be, this verse om the time of the begng of creatn very naturally affirms the two sex (male and female, father and mother) ditg that a man has both a mother and father, not two fathers or two mothers, providg the natural, healthy ntext for the Scripture's future disgt wh and nmnatn of homosexualy. Born Milwkee to parents Lnel Herbert Dahmer and Joyce Ante Flt on May 21, 1960, Jefey Lnel Dahmer was a homosexual who went on a killg and rapg spree startg at the age of eighteen. Kraft enjoyed takg Polaroids of his victims, many of whom were posed on his uch, at the home he shared wh his gay lover, addg to the wealth of evince stackg up agast this killer.

The dictments e after police have said they were vtigatg siar crim at bars, where they said gay people and straight people have both been victimized, acrdg to the New York Tim.

Jt 22 years after clash wh police outsi the Stonewall Inn Greenwich Village opened a promisg new ont the ongog fight for LGBTQ+ rights, AIDS was cimatg the queer muny and hate crim were on the rise, no small part due to the tragilly wispread misperceptn of the vis as a gay disease and lack of unrstandg about how was transmted.

*BEAR-MAGAZINE.COM* GAY KILLERS

KGOV's List of Gay Mass Murrers | .

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